Melbourne Nightlife Blog

23 March, 2008

Increasing the drinking age to 21

Jason Dowling has written a two-page piece in today's Age about the current push for the drinking age to be lifted from 18 to 21 years of age. Professor Jon Currie, chairman of the Victorian Drug and Alcohol Prevention Council and the director of addiction medicine and mental health at St Vincent's Hospital, said lifting the drinking age to 21 would be a "last resort", but it should definitely be included in discussions about youth alcohol abuse.

Others in support of an increase of the age for drinking alcohol include John Toumbourou, a Deakin University health psychology professor who also works for the Murdoch Children's Research Institute. He said he was a "very strong supporter" of lifting the drinking age as it had a proven track record of reducing alcohol-related harm to the brain, which is still forming into the early 20s.

Brian Kearney, chief executive of Victoria's Australian Hotels Association (AHA), said lifting the limit would make criminals of thousands of 18 to 21 year-old youths.

Source: The Age

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